Melissa Blease gets a wintry glow at this good-value, laidback French bistro

The sun has taken annual leave, the double-dip is threatening to blight Christmas and me fella’s glued to footie on the TV. Sorrows needed to be drowned... and fast.

And so it came to pass that my best girlfriend - an utterly fabulous woman who shall, for the purposes of this review, henceforth be known as Lady Bath - and I took to a snug corner table at Bistro La Barrique, the Bath branch of the smart but cosy urban oasis (see also Gloucester Road, Bristol) headed up by ineffably charming Gallic gourmet Michel Lemoine. As well as enjoying a reputation as an exceedingly congenial host, Lemoine is also known as the Prince of the Petits Plats, offering menus comprising a comprehensive range of dishes fluctuating around the £6-£7 mark, all largely inspired by the classic French bistro experience (tatins, cassoulets, terrines, etc) in an easygoing ambience to match.

OK, tasting/tapas menus aren’t exactly a novel concept, while grazing is as familiar to the British comprehension as chicken tikka masala, and only the most rigid restaurateur won’t allow picky eaters to feast on a trio of starters followed by a plate of cheeses instead of taking the more formal route to satiation. But BLB is unique in that it exists in a cheerful microclimate all of its own, thanks largely to the Franglais flair that infuses nearly every dish. Choose wisely, and it’s possible to eat like a European (meat/fish, salad, bread, wine) for around £15 a head.

A boulette de porc scrambled with lardons of bacon served on a bed of toothsome puy lentils (£6.95) proved what a miraculous melange can, in competent hands, be forged from such ostensibly humble ingredients, while a dish of velvety slow-cooked beef with paprika and sour cream (£6.75) reminded us why winter is indeed the season to be jolly. For individuals with less obnoxious appetites than Lady Bath and I, either dish was in fact substantial enough to constitute a stand-alone main course teamed with, perhaps, some bread for mopping or a side of potato gratin (highly recommended, and almost as good as the perfect chips). As it was, we followed the route map as recommended on the BLB menu, and chose to share three mains and two sides between us.

Being a jaded food critic’n’all, there were a couple of slightly less than successful experiences within our feast: we expected our seared scallops with pak choi and ginger sabayon (£6.95) to be a contemporary incarnation of coquilles St Jacques with a bit of an exotic twist, when in fact the dish definitely needed a bit more work in order to lift it out of the bland comfort food zone, while a side order of garlic and parsley green beans weren’t dressed in anywhere near enough garlic and parsley to warrant the description. But such minor niggles were swiftly compensated for by a smooth, sexy creme brulee and a sharp lemon tart that proved to be almost as bracing as Lady Bath’s incisive observations on love, life and lascivious behaviour. And anyway, those lesser-spotted lowlights are nowhere near significant enough to distract from BLB’s USP: a cosy, well-priced, welcoming bistro specialising in cosy, well-priced, welcoming food supplemented by a thoroughly decent wine list that offers familiar succour and brave new world zeitgeist in equal measure (and which, by the way, earned the restaurant a winning gong in the recent Bath Good Food Awards). Service, too, is equally heartwarming. Ah, thank goodness for old friends.

CONTACT

BISTRO LA BARRIQUE 31 BARTON ST, BATH. FFI: 01225 463861, WWW.BISTROLABARRIQUE.CO.UK

THE VERDICT

A friendly, familiar, uplifting experience

Copyright Melissa Blease 2011